WWDmen's

WWDMen’s Collections Preview

Runway Ready All eyes turn to MilAn, As the fAll Men’s collections kick off this sAturdAy. new york’s John VArVAtos hAs MoVed his show to the itAliAn city this seAson, And is set to inJect his signAture brAnd of sophisticAted rock ’n’ roll style into the four dAys of shows. here, An exclusiVe eArly look At VArVAtos’ fAll collection.

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PHOTO BY kHePri sTudiO

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New York Market Preview Fresh Faces oN the catwalks Marc ecko’s italiaN adveNture the New Master tailors rePort FroM Pitti

DON’T LEAVE MILAN WITHOUT IT. Diesel. Piazza San Babila. Milan.

DON’T EVEN THINK OF IT.

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Brooks Bros. Finds Fresh Niche for Southwick Dermer stressed the models and piece goods being offered to specialty stores are different from those being used for Brooks Bros.

“There will never be a Southwick label on a parent, Southwick has been given a new lease Brooks Brothers suit,” he said. Del Vecchio on life. added: “The only thing that is the same is In July, Brooks Brothers bought Southwick the shoulder because that’s what Brooks Clothing LLC through an acquisition subsidiary Brothers is and that’s what Southwick is.” and over the past six months has worked to reAt The Collective, Dermer will showcase the invigorate the company. The fruits of that labor new offerings, which include the Lawrence, an will be unveiled at The Collective on Sunday updated model targeted to a younger customwhen Southwick reveals several new models and er with a trimmer silhouette, narrower lapel, hundreds of new fabric choices targeted to indemore body and waist suppression and a smaller pendent specialty stores. Complementary shirts point-to-point measurement. There are three and ties will also be offered for the first time. options: a two- or three-button, side-vented These offerings are separate and distinct from model; a single-breasted peak lapel and a douthe goods Southwick will produce for Brooks ble-breasted six on two.

Bros., its largest client, and will be priced well Next up is the Sinclair, a new softly constructbelow high-end European goods. Suits will reed sport coat that is french-faced and yoke-lined tail for $895 to $1,495; sport coats, $695 to $1,195; with a smaller sleeve head. It is available in a shirts, $105 to $225, and neckwear, $95 to $125. two-button, with side vents and three open patch The highest-priced product in each category will pockets. be the new Southwick Gold line.

A third offering is the Dorset, a “great work “This will compare to suits from Italy that suit” that is “still Brooks Brothers’ best seller,” would retail for $1,700 to $1,900,” said Claudio Dermer said. “It’s the classic American business Del Vecchio, chief executive officer of Brooks suit.” This model comes in two or three buttons Bros. “And there’s no currency risk,” added Joe with center or side vents.

Dixon, senior vice president of production and The Douglas, which is the first model technical.

Southwick ever made, will also be available: a Despite the lower prices, Southwick suits non-darted sack coat, three buttons and a centerwill use only European fabrics from Italy and vent. “You can’t find this in a department store,” England, including fabrics from Loro Piana, Del Vecchio said.

Piacenza and other luxury brands. The suits will In all offerings, the fabric selection will be exsport a cobranded label calling out the name of pansive, Dixon said. It will include subtle addithe mill as well. tions of color and a variety of weights to service A state-of-the-art factory in Haverhill, Mass., stores around the country. will open in February, enabling Southwick to sigSouthwick will also offer made-to-measure. nificantly increase its production capabilities.

The singleThe two“We will have a lot more variety,” Dermer said.

In the past few years, more than 80 percent breasted Lawrence. button Dorset.

“And the turnaround will be under four weeks.” of Southwick’s production was for Brooks Bros., Dixon added: “As we get better, we see this as a and although the company has 150 specialty Brooks Bros. did, however, retain Southwick’s leg- real competitive advantage. Our goal is 10 days.” store clients, those customers often found themselves Another advantage, in their view, is that the entire waiting for product while the manufacturer concen- acy, the soft-shoulder suit. “It’s a true natural shoultrated on its larger customer. “Southwick was run- der,” said Peter Dermer, vice president of sales for collection is made in the U.S. “The prices of Italian ning to keep up with the demand,” Dixon said. “But Southwick, who was retained to spearhead the sales goods are sky-high, and specialty stores are looking for U.S.-made product,” Dermer said. with the new facility, we can service Brooks Brothers effort. “It’s timeless and never goes out of style.”

That includes the shirts and ties that will be proThe Lawrence, Mass.-based Southwick was foundand other specialty stores as well.”

Del Vecchio added: “[Specialty stores] used to ed by Italian immigrants Vito and Nick Greico in duced for Southwick in Brooks Bros.’ existing factoorder in January and get the shipments in October 1929 and was sold in 1990 to Bayer Clothing. Master ries in Garland, N.C. (shirts), and Long Island City, when they were already marking down. Now, if tailors, the Greicos convinced Brooks Bros. manage- N.Y. (ties).

Del Vecchio declined to provide a projected volthey need it in August, they will get it in August.” ment some six decades ago to transition to a naturalDel Vecchio said this will be possible because of the shoulder garment and has been producing the signa- ume number for Southwick. “Brooks Brothers is running a healthy business, and we’re in this for the long upgrades to the factory, which is 97 percent new. ture Brooks Bros. suit since then.

Now the goal is to reestablish its position with term. What I care about is that we do this the right “When we bought it, the youngest machine was 25 way, and the business will come.” smaller specialty stores. years old,” he said.

Down the road, Del Vecchio said, there’s the possi“We have relationships with them already,” Del But all 300 of Southwick’s factory employees were retained and are being trained to work at the new Vecchio said, “but if we were selling them eight suits bility Southwick could produce private label goods for facility, which is located about 15 minutes from the before, now we’re hoping for 25. The economy won’t larger department stores and expand its small internaold plant. “That’s what we bought,” Del Vecchio said, be helping us, but there may be some opportunity to tional business. But for now, “Southwick will dedicate 100 percent of its efforts to the smaller stores.” give their customers a reason to walk in the door.” “the people. We kept nothing else.”

By Jean E. Palmieri

NEW YORK — Thanks to its new deep-pocketed

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supported by more targeted ads in smaller cities.

Additionally, the ads will run in select fashion and lifestyle magazines around the world, including GQ, Vogue Hommes International and Citizen .

Meyers has become a regular in men’s fashion ads in recent years, having been in the fall 2006 and spring 2007 Versace men’s campaigns, as well as in Hugo Boss’s Hugo fragrance ads since 2005. His films include “Match Point,” “Mission: Impossible III” and “August ush.”

Hassan said he was not concerned Meyers has been the face of other fashion brands in recent campaigns. “The styling and concept of the campaign is uniquely Energie,” he explained.

Energie, which is the men’s counterpart to the Miss Sixty brand, is distributed in about 50 U.S. wholesale accounts, including Nordstrom, Macy’s West and Urban Outfitters. Additionally, there are two stand-alone Energie stores in Miami and Los Angeles, as well as 11 Energie-Miss Sixty units in other U.S. cities. Worldwide, there are 300 Energie stores.

Sixty Group, which includes Miss Sixty, Sixty, Energie, illah, efrigiWear, Murphy & Nye, ichlu and Baracuta, had sales of about 700 million euros, or $929.4 million at current exchange, in 2008.

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I k rE r Jonathan hys Meyers for its new advertising campaign. The Irish actor, who appears in Showtime’s “The Tudors,” will be featured in the brand’s spring and fall global campaigns.

“Jonathan hys Meyers perfectly captures the rock ’n’ roll attitude and ‘style-clash’ aesthetic that characterizes the Energie brand,” said Wichy Hassan, co-founder and creative director of Sixty Group SpA, the Chieti, Italy-based parent company of Energie.

“As an Irish actor with a successful film and television career, Jonathan has broad global appeal. And more importantly, off camera he has a casual, cool downtown style and he is a real denim connoisseur.”

The ads were lensed in a Paris studio by Steven lein, who has worked for the brand previously, and styled by Patti Wilson. The images are meant to convey notions of movement and perspective, with set walls constructed at distorted angles. “The images play with the idea of strength, masculinity and power,” said Hassan. “I think they are very sexy and strong.”

The spring campaign will break worldwide in February, with the primary investment concentrated in outdoor and digital media. The outdoor campaign will be a branding initiative in capital cities, R

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Jonathan Rhys Meyers Stars in New Energie Ads

— David Lipke

The new ads break in February, with the biggest investment in outdoors and online.

zegna.com

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Marc Ecko Launches High-End, Made-in-Italy Label product, but rather a stylized Rx symbol — was originally created for the European market, but the company has decided to also push it in the U.S. The comLooking beyond the recession, Marc Ecko pany established its European business in 2000, and is heading upmarket for a new tailored clothing and operates wholly owned subsidiaries in Milan for the sportswear line that will make its debut at retail this Italian market, Stockholm for Scandinavia, Munich fall. Dubbed Marc Ecko Prescription, the label will be for Central and Eastern Europe and Paris for Western made entirely in Italy and features luxe fabrics and inEurope and North Africa. novative finishing techniques, and even incorporates In the U.S., the collection will be sold out of the Marc Ecko’s own oil paintings as design embellishments.

Ecko New York showroom in a dedicated lounge in “I have great timing,” joked Ecko of unveiling the Ecko’s personal office space to create an intimate vibe. high-ticket product amid the current retail malaise.

The partnership with Montezemolo was born out of a “But I’m not positioning this label as specifically upchance encounter between Ecko and the son of the owner scale — it’s more about being something rare and speof the Italian clothing house in 2007. “I was in Milan cial. I’m not a luxury guy — I’m not that dude. This doing some speaking engagements at fashion universiisn’t about price, but about creating something classities, and a business associate introduced me to Lorenzo er and a little more labor-intensive.”

Guazzini,” recalled Ecko. “I thought he was cool and had The venture is a partnership with Montezemolo, a great sense of style, and the more time we spent togetha classic Italian suit maker based in the Prato region er, we talked about doing something together.” of Tuscany that will manufacture all the Prescription The somewhat traditional Montezemolo — which product. “These folks have the capacity to do some resells suits and sportswear under its own label, in ally interesting finishes — we’re using all-natural fibers, wholesale accounts and a group of company-owned but adding a sheen to them,” noted Ecko. “It allows us stores — wasn’t an obvious match for the streetwear to do stuff we could never do somewhere else.” pioneer, and the companies are stretching beyond Best known for his Ecko Unlimited streetwear their natural comfort zones, said Ecko. “The first time brand that sells hoodies for $40 and jeans for $68, I met this young designer and his team from New York, Marc Ecko Prescription will offer tailored jackets I thought they were bischeri — lucky to grow up in the that retail for about $650; jeans and pants, for $220; age of easy money,” added Renzo Guazzini, owner of woven shirts, for $220; reversible cashmere sweaters, Montezemolo. “Then I observed Marc working in my for $530, and T-shirts, from $85 to $110. Wholesale cusfactory, engaged until midnight to fine-tune little detomers will be able to custom order their assortments tails. I saw how passionate he was in describing his from a variety of styles and fabrics. In the dress-up vision, along with his love and respect for our tradiofferings, suit jackets are available in two models — A shirt from the debut collection adorned with the tion of craftsmanship. We are a great match — he is an a narrow lapel and a shawl collar — in four fabrics. designer’s own artwork. artist with a unique understanding of youth culture, Dress shirts are available in eight fabric choices.

In the sportswear component, there are blazers, vests, cloth and leather outer- and we bring our heritage of tailoring into the mix.”

The Prescription line is a step above Ecko’s current top-end line, Marc Ecko wear, pants, jeans, woven shirts, hoodies, sweaters and T-shirts in the fall lineup.

Additionally, there are handmade accessories that come in limited edition runs Cut & Sew, a men’s contemporary label that is sold in specialty and department of 100 pieces, including bags, flasks, agenda books and belts, with prices available stores, as well as 10 branded freestanding stores in the U.S. and two overseas units, in Montreal and Stockholm. (A second Cut & Sew store is slated to open upon request.

The company is not setting a specific sales goal for Prescription — the name is in Montreal, and another in Moscow, by the second quarter of this year.) The an homage to Ecko’s pharmacist father, and his own short-lived pharmacy college Prescription line may be stocked in Cut & Sew stores this fall, but that decision has not been finalized. career — noting that it’s not meant to be a volume business, but rather to cater to In addition to the Ecko Unltd., Cut & Sew and Prescription labels, Marc Ecko a select group of top-end specialty stores looking for a unique selling proposition.

“Marc Ecko Prescription was not created to meet numbers in our profit and loss Enterprises includes the Ecko Red junior line, the midtier Avirex brand, the Zoo statement — it was created by Marc Ecko to build something without the limita- York action sports brand, Complex magazine and Marc Ecko Entertainment, a tions of mass production, minimum orders and big retail stipulations,” explained production company that creates interactive entertainment and video games.

Rachelle Louis, senior manager for international and business development at Total retail sales for all of its products topped $1.5 billion last year, according to the company, which is owned by Ecko, his business partner Seth Gerszberg and Marc Ecko Enterprises.

Ecko’s sister, Marci Tapper.

The new label — which doesn’t have the actual word “Prescription” on the

By David Lipke

Paul & Shark to Sail Onto Rodeo Drive

By Jean E. Palmieri Paul & Shark will expand its retail presence in the U.S. this spring when it opens a flagship store on Rodeo Drive.

The Italian sportswear company will debut a twolevel, 2,100-square-foot unit at 449 North Rodeo Drive between Brighton Way and Santa Monica Boulevard in March. Among the store’s neighbors are Lacoste on the right and Max Mara on the left as well as Loro Piana. It is directly across the street from a Ralph Lauren store.

Men’s wear will be housed on the 1,600-squarefoot main floor, with women’s and children’s wear on the 500-square-foot mezzanine, according to Rachelle Giroux, president of Paul & Shark USA Inc. Giroux said the company intends to do a soft opening in March “and then perhaps plan a local event in the fall when consumer sentiment and interest hopefully improves.”

Like most other apparel companies, Paul & Shark has been affected by the economic downturn, and for that reason Giroux was hesitant to provide an estimate on volume for the new store. “This is difficult to forecast due to the retail economy and it being a new market for us,” she said, “so we have prepared a cautious but achievable budget forecast. We expect that 2010 will be a more realistic plan.”

She continued: “Like everyone, our business could be better. Yet, with all the negativity that occurred in 2008, we are down only 1 percent versus last year in our U.S. stores and are very happy with that result.” Giroux attributed the strong showing to “fine-tuning our buys to customer trends by store, maintaining a realistic inventory level and chasing

sales whenever possible with Italy’s stock program.

Our wholesale business was down slightly due to our specialty stores’ anticipation of a slow fall ’09. We are not sold in department stores, so that may have somewhat helped our final results.”

Like many other executives, Giroux said the company “didn’t anticipate as deep of a recession as it currently is. Nonetheless, we have an ambitious strategy for [growth] in the U.S. and we want to seize any viable opportunity that might be out there to achieve it. We are taking a long-term approach and are investing in our future. It’s one of our last frontiers.”

Currently, Paul & Shark operates three stores in the U.S. — Madison Avenue in New York, Bal Harbor, Fla., and Short Hills, N.J. “We wanted a place on Rodeo, even though our options were limited,” Giroux said, noting that “finding space in a short three-street distance is expensive and not easily achieved.” However, because the company attracts an international consumer — customers outside the U.S. account for one third of the business in New York and Florida — she is confident the store will do well.

“We also believe that it fits perfectly with some of our top global retail locations,” she added, singling out Via Montenapoleone in Milan, Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, Portofino, Florence and the Landmark Building in Hong Kong as examples.

Giroux said that due to the “temperate year-round climate in Los Angeles, we expect to do well with our more casual and leisure collections. Our DNA, since 1921, has been nautical knitwear, even though we have become a full lifestyle collection — including wovens, outerwear, pants and accessories — in recent years. We offer unique styling details as well as leading-edge technology that is unlike the more

A rendering of the new store. popular Italian sportswear brands.”

Giroux said the company, which operates more than 200 stores in Europe, the Middle East, Russia, China, India, South America, the Carribean and the U.S., has a plan to add a store a year for the next three years. “We are evaluating the retailing opportunities as they present themselves,” she said, “but we plan to expand on the West Coast and in the southern U.S. when the time is right.”

© 2009 9 JA Apparel Corp.

T H E T H I N G S T H AT G I V E Y O U S T R E N G T H D O N ’ T J U S T H A N G I N Y O U R C L O S E T.

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Angeloni’s New Aria Brioni’s former chief aims to rebrand the Caruso label, launching it in the U.S. this summer.

By Emilie Marsh MILAN — Umberto Angeloni, the soft-spoken but high-profile former chief executive officer of Brioni, has returned with a new luxury venture, and he’s not letting the recession hold him back.

In October, two years after his acrimonious split with the family-owned Italian label, Angeloni purchased a 35 percent stake in men’s wear manufacturer Raffaele Caruso SpA. One of Italy’s best-kept secrets, Caruso manufactures men’s formalwear for prominent brands, including Dior, Lanvin and Ralph Lauren, and sells private label as well as the Caruso brand to retailers such as Barneys New York. All told, the company produces more than 180,000 pieces a year at its three plants, all located near Parma.

In an interview, Angeloni unveiled ambitious plans for the Caruso label and the framework for a new men’s wear concept dubbed UMAN, both of which he hopes will capture imagination and market share once the downturn passes. Last year, Caruso generated revenues of 61 million euros, or $81.5 million at current exchange. Angeloni plans to double that figure in five years.

Caruso is known for its handmade quality, but until now has had limited distribution, predominantly in Italian and German specialty stores.

With an eye toward distributing the 50-year-old label to top retailers in America and Europe as early as this summer, Angeloni enlisted the image of Enrico Caruso, the century-old Italian opera star — once lead tenor at the Metropolitan Opera — as part of a rebranding exercise.

“We needed a new identity for the brand,” Angeloni said.

“There is no relation between Raffaele Caruso and Enrico…But the link is, he was the first Italian point of excellence in the world in 1904. He represented Italy and all its values and passions, a symbol of the Italian way of life, which is exactly what [the] Caruso [label] wants to be. We don’t want to overlook the fact that Caruso has a heritage, the prominence of a tailor, but that’s not particularly different from the other tailored brands. We wanted to link it to higher values than just needle, thread and thimble.”

Caruso will unveil key pieces of its new collection in June, including a jacket named after the legendary opera singer.

Angeloni has also enhanced Caruso’s back-office operations, adding 15 customer-service employees

to its 600-person staff. “The company’s mission is to be the best supplier of formalwear for brands and the best supplier to retailers,” Angeloni explained, noting service is “paramount.”

He added that Caruso would be sold exclusively through multibrand channels, bucking the trend for direct distribution. “Retailers are professionals at retail,” he said. “Brands are not.”

As ceo of Brioni, Angeloni epitomized the luxury lifestyle, presiding over the Brioni Polo Classic and writing a book on the pleasures of single-malt Scotch. Now, with UMAN, he is seeking a new way to serve a consumer not unlike himself.

“We’re not launching a brand or a label, we’re launching a concept,” Angeloni explained. “At the moment, the affluent consumer has a choice between a custom tailor who will make him something Umberto very traditional, or a fashion Angeloni house that will make something very seasonal. But nothing relates to his way of life, to his passions, to his skills, to his values…. I believe that the affluent customer is looking for something entirely different when it comes to creating his wardrobe….

UMAN will be like a club which works with its members, giving them suggestions on how to develop their own unique look.”

He cited a Tyrolean jacket by Viennese tailor Knize, a Zhongshan suit by Hong Kong emporium Shanghai Tang or a Norfolk jacket by Henry Poole of Savile Row as examples of wardrobe staples UMAN could source and/or reinterpret.

Angeloni said UMAN would unveil its first “concept room” on Via Gesu in Milan’s Golden Triangle shopping district in June, showing a limited selection of iconic wardrobe pieces addressing men’s passions and hobbies.

“There will be a completely new affluent consumer waiting at the end of the [recession]…who wants to show status skills, not status objects,” Angeloni said.

Five retailers worldwide will be selected to distribute the line, Angeloni said. He declined to give further details.

“One must start a dialogue with the consumer. It’s no longer ‘I make; you buy. I talk; you listen.’ It’s, ‘This is what I can make, and this is why I want to make it. Tell me what you think about it. Tell me what you like. Tell me where you are coming from.

Tell me what your skills are,’ and I’ll create a wardrobe for you.”

The Thin Bleu Line

MILAN — Moncler Gamme Bleu, the French skiwear

brand’s new men’s collection designed by Thom Browne, will bring to a Milan runway on Monday a combination of Browne’s Anglo-American sartorial style and Moncler’s sportif heritage.

Many of Browne’s signatures are apparent in advance images, including gray wool, tailoring, tricolor stripes, long caps and, of course, uncommon proportions.

But the focus is very much on down puffers, Moncler’s iconic item. “You can wear these things for skiing in a very original way, or you can wear them in the city,” said Moncler chairman and creative director Remo Ruffini.

In fact, Browne said that everything that will be shown on the runway was designed to function with high activity and movement, and everything will be commercialized.

“For it to be true to Moncler, it had to be functional,” said Browne.

— Jean Scheidnes

Two looks from the Moncler Gamme Bleu collection.

Fila to Develop James Blake Collection deal

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T J B with Fila for a cobranded line of men’s apparel and footwear.

The line will include a variety of tennis, golf and fitness apparel, accessories and performance footwear. A limited edition of tennis and fitness products will launch before the U.S. Open in New York in September and the collection will launch at retail for spring-summer 2010.

The collaboration “will be the basis for the development of a long-term licensing business for Blake,” according to Fila, which said other product categories could be added in the future “as opportunities arise in the market.”

A Fila spokesman said the prices and distribution of lake

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James Blake will wear Fila exclusively on the court.

the collection have not yet been determined.

As part of the deal, Blake will wear Fila branded or cobranded tennis apparel and footwear exclusively on the court and will be featured in Fila’s worldwide marketing efforts.

“Ever since [Björn] Borg graced the courts of Wimbledon in Fila, I have always been attracted to the Italian style, grace and sophistication of the Fila brand,” Blake said in a statement. “My collaboration with Fila is much more than an endorsement arrangement. It will serve as the foundation of a business venture that I hope will continue to build for years to come.”

Blake is the first top 10 American male in more than 10 years to sign with Fila.

— Jean E. Palmieri

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Independents to Proceed With Caution Battered by recession, specialty stores plan to slash open-to-buy, focus on exciting pieces at New York market.

By Jean E. Palmieri Large publicly traded retailers weren’t the only ones clobbered by the tough fall and holiday season. Independent specialty stores also felt the impact of the recession and consumers’ reluctance to spend. The difference is that smaller merchants don’t have the large-store luxury of receiving markdown money from vendors. And so now, when the bills come due, many face another hurdle — how to pay for goods that didn’t sell while pondering their shopping lists for next fall.

That’s the backdrop for many retailers heading to New York for market. Although most stores surveyed

by WWD are still planning to make the trip to shop The Collective, Blue, Project and the men’s wear showrooms, they’re significantly cutting back on their opento-buys for the season, some by as much as 50 percent.

As Ellen Levy, co-owner of Levy’s in Nashville, put it: “Everything has to be cut back, but I’m not worried. There’s no shortage of inventory.”

Nevertheless, retailers realize that, to get customers into stores, they need to find fresh, exciting merchandise to whet their appetites. Although this quest is nothing new, it’s even more important this year since the same tried-and-true basics are not enough to lure shoppers living in the worst economic downturn in a generation.

David Rubenstein of Rubenstein’s in New Orleans said he’s planning to shop the New York market, although he won’t be staying as long as he has in the past.

“But we’ll be there,” he said. “We’ve still got to buy things.”

In Rubenstein’s case, that buying will be scaled back this season. “Our open-to-buy is about 50 percent of what it was last year,” he said. “And we are not adding any resources until we get a better feel for spring.”

Christmas sales were “very bad,” he admitted, “and it’s tough to do 2004 revenues with 2008 expenses. But the challenge going ahead is to remain upbeat and really become businessmen and women again.

It’s intimidating to be forced to deal with it, but it’s also invigorating.”

For those companies whose balance sheets have remained strong, there are possibilities that will pay dividends after the recession ends. “This is this generation’s opportunity to acquire assets in a distressed environment, and will probably only happen once in our lifetimes. There’s going to be a lot of real estate available, and if an opportunity came along, we would consider [opening another store],” Giddon said. “We’re strong, we have no debt and we’ll be looking. But right now, the consumer is still on strike.”

open-to-buy is about 50 percent “of Our what it was last year. And we are not

Ken Giddon

As a result, his visit to vendors this month will morph into something other than a buying trip. “We’re excited about going to market,” he said. “We want to see who our friends are. We’ve been a good customer for many years and we’re going to see who’s really our partner. When wholesalers say they feel our pain, I wonder if they do. We’re paying them full price and marking things — David Rubenstein down 50 percent. That doesn’t seem like a partnership to me.”

Giddon said he’ll be “looking for a level playing field.

In New York, he will be filling holes in his tailored clothing inventory, he said, and looking at sportswear. If department stores are getting markdown money, I But for the latter, he’s waiting to see if business turns want it too. We pay with the same money they do.”

He plans to attend The Collective and Project, but around in March or April before adding a lot of inventory. He plans go back into the market to freshen without preconceived notions of what he needs to buy.

“We’ll be thinking outside the box in all categories,” he the store before Father’s Day. said. “I’m going to market with more of an open mind “We will play it conservatively,” he said.

Rubenstein also plans to trim the dollars spent than I ever have. I’m going under the assumption that on luxury-level goods. “Medium-price sold well, but things will get better and I’ll be looking at the lines luxury is taking the biggest hit,” he said. He pointed with the best chance of making me money. And I’m to the more-moderately priced Jack Victor as an ex- going to avoid anything that is 80 percent off at Saks.”

Hill Stockton, owner of Norman Stockton in ample of a suit vendor that has connected with customers. The same holds true for other categories. In Winston-Salem, N.C., also acknowledged “Christmas furnishings, shirts retailing for $150 to $200 are out- wasn’t really very good.”

And like Giddon, he’s not making a shopping list performing those in the $300-to-$400 range. And so, the former will be on his abbreviated shopping list for his trip to New York this time. “It’s more about picking people’s brains,” he said. “I don’t know the next week.

“With sweaters and jackets, if we sell through, answers, and I want to talk to other guys about what they’re thinking and how they’re buying.” we’ll fill in,” he said.

For Stockton, it’s not merchandise — exciting or Still, Rubenstein added he believes “business will level off ” soon. “I don’t think it will go down from basic — that will draw shoppers into stores during this recession. “We have to figure out how to get them here,” he said.

Rubenstein, like many other specialty stores, said in the door,” he said. “It’s probably more about marthe tough economic climate is forcing him to turn his keting than anything else. If it looks good and is marfocus back to the basics of retailing. “It’s like starting keted well, then it will get people in.”

But he also recognizes his stores have to be invitover again, like it’s our first day in business,” he said.

“Before, life was easy and we didn’t have to make ing. “You have to look like you’re in business and the tough decisions, but then the bell rang. Now, we keep an upbeat attitude.” He plans to spend about really have to look at our overhead. But that’s how 30 percent less than in the past, he said, and will be wary of investing too much in luxury goods. “I’ll be people got started.”

Ken Giddon, president of Rothmans in New York looking forward to seeing what’s new, but also having City, agreed. “Many of us confused brains with a bull conversations. I want to talk to people doing things a market,” he said. “Now we have to think about expens- little differently.”

Dick Hite, owner of Norton Ditto in Houston, es, our vendor structure and our personnel costs.”

adding any resources until we get a better feel for spring.

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”

plans to open a store in the Woodlands in March and will skip the New York market himself. However, his buying team is making the trip.

And although business is far from robust, sales aren’t as bad as others have experienced, Hite reported. “Through October, we were down only 4 percent for the year, but November was very bad. December was fair — we didn’t match last year, but we had a good month. The good news is that our inventories are clean and we did our normal markdowns — nothing extraordinary.”

At The Collective, his buyers will be seeking “something to take the place of the long-sleeve sport shirt,” he said. “We’re looking for a unique, dressy knit presentation, something totally new and different.” In the Seventies, he recalled, there were “very dressy knits with different buttons and different fabrics and we keep thinking somebody Hill can adapt that for today.”

Stockton The store’s sportswear buyer will also attend Project in hopes of finding merchandise that can generate excitement. “I don’t think people will buy unless they get excited,” he said. “And it’s our job to romance it.”

Levy said her store will spend one day at The Collective and will also visit several tailored clothing and collections showrooms while in New York. She intends to hold back on buying furnishings and sportswear until the MAGIC show in February in Las Vegas.

“We’re doing okay, but these are challenging times,” she said. “You have to be optimistic, but you also have to be cautious.” At market, she said she would be “looking for interesting things to stimulate the customer.

We have to have basics, but we’re also looking for something exciting.”

Case in point: She said Levy’s added Scott Kay men’s jewelry for fall and customers responded strongly. “It’s new, it’s different and it created excitement.”

It’s also made in America, which resonates with customers these days. In fact, Levy’s hosted a Made in America week in its store last spring and will repeat it in May — anything to give customers a reason to stop in.

Sam Malouf of Malouf ’s in Burlingame, Calif., said that, despite the recession, “What we are looking for hasn’t changed. We continue to look for great pieces — unique, well designed and in a particular fit. I still think fit is key. It’s what is exciting the customer.

When he puts on a jacket, sweater, pant, knit or shirt, it’s one of the key selling points. It gives him a modern look that makes him feel more fit or in shape.”

Malouf said that modern silhouettes have been a bright spot for the business and he’s seeking updates in all brands, ranging from Brioni and Etro to Paul Smith and Robert Talbott. “We carry the same point of view in traditional as we do modern and contemporary lines,” he said, noting it helps “move our customer forward.”

“Some people are talking about getting back to basics, but I don’t think there is anything inspirational about buying basics. It is still going to take great product to excite the customer. In men’s wear, it is all in the details.”

Although modern looks are doing well, Malouf said the store has experienced a “slowdown in all classifications,” and so will be “cautious and even more thoughtful” when shopping this season. We have always picked the cream, but now it is going to be tough because instead of buying five great pieces, we are going to have to buy three. We don’t plan on adding any new resources without taking out a resource.”

He will also seek to add more moderately priced merchandise to appeal to a customer who has cut back on buying. “The perception of being high priced hurts us as much as it helps us,” he said. “So far I have not seen many customers [trade] down in quality, but they have bought less or have not bought at all and are making do with what they own. I think when they are ready to spend again they will buy in their same quality level but a bit less.”

10 WWD, thursday, january 15, 2009 SECTION II

WWD.COM

Photo courtesy of wilhelmina

WWD Men’s collections preview

Adam Senn

Adam’s Big Apple Model Adam Senn becomes tabloid fodder, thanks to a little show called “The City.”

A rendering of the new space.

Isaia Opening Naples Flagship

By Emilie Marsh MILAN — You can take the man out of Naples but you

can’t take Naples out of the man, or so Gianluca Isaia is hoping.

The president of Neapolitan sartorial label Isaia plans to open his first flagship in the heart of the Golden Triangle shopping district here on Sunday. Units in New York — on Madison Avenue — and Tokyo are slated to follow in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

Isaia also plans to launch its first scent in June under license with an undisclosed partner and a concierge service to provide shopping and lifestyle assistance such as travel tips, hotel and restaurant recommendations to faithful customers.

“It’s a big step for us. It’s a statement. It means that we are ready for the next phase to be recognized as a

Gianluca Isaia

worldwide brand,” Isaia said of the store, which is tucked under the arcades of the tony Via Pietro Verri opposite leading men’s wear brands Jil Sander, Burberry and Tom Ford.

“The store promotes and communicates our identity, which is both in the fashion and classic arena,” Isaia said, calling it “a balancing act between contemporary and tradition that makes up our DNA.” Isaia expects the 3,500-square-foot store to generate 2.5 million euros, or $3.4 million at current exchange, this year, a slightly lower figure than originally estimated due to the difficult economic climate, Isaia said.

In 2008, sales at the company, which also counts four franchised stores in Russia and Eastern Europe, increased 12.5 percent to 27 million euros, or $39.7 million at average exchange. The U.S. accounts for 45 percent of sales.

Isaia admitted it was “a very delicate moment” to open a flagship but at the same time “a great opportunity” because customers today are looking for “real products.”

“For this reason we find opportunity in this recession,” Isaia said, adding it was essential to “plan, control and monitor” in such times.

Isaia is known for a contemporary classic style, which is colorful and flamboyant, yet rooted in tailoring excellence — much like the company president, the third generation of Neapolitan suitmakers, who wears a plaid gray suit with a soft Neapolitan shoulder, accessorized with a turquoise silk pocket square, and paired with handmade leather sandals from Capri.

He is hoping men follow suit, literally.

“It’s complicated, It’s a big bet. We are traditional but at the same time contemporary. We must find a way to have the two live together under the same roof,” Isaia said.

The brand’s new Milanese home does exactly that.

Converted from office space, the store, designed by British architect James Irvine, spreads out over two floors and features 10 floor-to-ceiling windows that illuminate the shop’s white and aubergine walls, marble display units and wooden floors.

Men’s accessories and a debut jewelry line for women are housed on the first floor, while up a marble staircase the label’s summer ’09 ready-to-wear collection is displayed on the second floor.

Further in, there is the made-to-measure room, the centerpiece of which is a colossal table for laying out nearly 1,000 fabric references, where customers will be able to observe the tailors at work.

On the wall, a touch-screen plasma television shows the production of suits in the factory in Casalnuovo, on the outskirts of Naples, where the company was started in the Fifties by Gianluca’s grandfather, Enrico Isaia.

“The key to success is for customers to feel that they are in your world,” Isaia said. “Everything should say Isaia, even if customers don’t even see the brand name.”

Given Isaia’s following among leading Hollywood men such as Matt Damon, Jake Gyllenhaal and Hugh Jackman, the store also boasts a VIP room dubbed the Vesuvius room, so named because of a sculptural light fixture, which is shaped like an upside down Mount Vesuvius, the volcano overlooking Pompeii near Naples.

Other references to Southern Italy include a sea sculpture and a painting of Pompeii.

“We will even have an aperitivo served on Saturdays and we’ll serve fresh mozzarella from Naples,” Isaia said. “You’ve never had mozzarella if it didn’t come from Naples.”

If MTV’s “The City” measures up to its predecessor, the monster hit “The Hills,” then it will rocket its cast, including Wilhelmina model Adam Senn, to media stardom.

At 24, Senn is practically a veteran, but nothing in his modeling career — not even appearing in a notorious Gucci ad with a strategically shaven Louise Pedersen — prepared him for the mild torture of watching himself on TV. “At first it was nail-biting,” he said. “It’s a real humbling experience to hear yourself speak. I definitely watch my tongue a lot more.”

Senn still models full time, and is coming to Milan as usual. He’ll at least walk for Dolce & Gabbana, who will shoot him for its look books.

Rumor had it that MTV cameras might follow him to Milan, but he denied that. “I’ve been working the same amount,” he said. “I have my same clients. Some of them don’t know I’m on TV at all, which is nice.”

But just wait. “The Hills” transformed its cast into tabloid bait and fashion plates, and enabled four of its female stars to launch apparel lines (to varying degrees of success). Senn and fellow Wilhelmina model Noah Mills already have a side venture designing T-shirts, which they call Gods N General. Senn is also an investor in two Manhattan restaurants, Il Bastardo and Bar Baresco. His agents say he’s artistic.

Wilhelmina discovered Senn in his home state of Texas. Although he had been offered golf scholarships, he turned down college for modeling, a gamble that seems to have paid off.

So far, “The City” viewers only know Senn as the roommate and sidekick to Jay Lyon, the romantic interest of the show’s central figure, Whitney Port. Senn has cautioned Lyon not to rush into a relationship with Port, and he backed up Lyon in a verbal dustup at a club.

Lyon was a model, too — the two became friends six years ago, at a Tommy Hilfiger show in Barcelona. Lyon introduced his eventual roommate to MTV, which folded him into “The City.” Senn claims he simply thought it would be a fun experience, rather than a launchpad to fame.

“Honestly, I didn’t watch ‘The Hills’ that much,” he said. “I was a secret fan of ‘Laguna Beach,’” which innovated the beautified “scriptedreality” genre and spun off “The Hills.”

“I’m just trying to have fun, mix it up. You never know how you’re going to come across,” he said. “You’ll see 100 percent real Adam. But I’m definitely not in control of the editing.”

It seems that, in future episodes, viewers will watch him fight with his girlfriend and struggle to fend off the advances of other women.

“People will get to see a real relationship. We have our ups and downs, but she’s the love of my life. We’ve been together almost two years,” he said of his girlfriend.

But whether or not he was seeking wider fame, Senn had his first brush with paparazzi recently.

“Jay and I were trying to find something to eat in SoHo, and before you know it, about six guys on scooters and bikes started lighting us up. We just kept looking for a place to eat. Then it was reported that we were on a shopping spree,” he said.

“I hope people see I’m not a bad guy,” he added. “I try to be a better guy every day, and I live in the moment.…I was a broke kid who moved to the city, to an apartment where cockroaches crawled on me, and I was fortunate to get a lot of opportunities in modeling. I’m definitely doing a lot better now.”

— Jean Scheidnes

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12 WWD, thursday, JANUARY 15, 2009 SECTION II

WWD Men’s collections preview

The Comeback Kid

After showing his men’s runway collection in Milan in 2003, John Varvatos returns to the Italian fashion capital for an encore.

WWD, thursday, JANUARY 15, 2009

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photos by khepri studio

WWD.COM

Looks from the John Varvatos fall collection: A linen and washed cotton parka with cracked finish; a wool and cashmere suit with washed velvet and linen waistcoat; a reversible linen trench with moleskin collar; a double-faced, washed wool single-breasted coat, with wool and cashmere pants.

By Jean Scheidnes John Varvatos might have overreached when he first showed in Milan.

He had reasons to be confident. After all, he was the featured guest designer at Florence’s Pitti Uomo the year before. And he’d racked up both the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s junior and senior awards for men’s wear design in his first two years in business. However, his Milan show in 2003 was received coolly.

Returning to the U.S., Varvatos’ big-budget shows became one of the main men’s wear events of New York Fashion Week. They showed off his combination of antique craftsmanship, refined tailoring, textile innovation and rock ’n’ roll attitude.

Even so, last summer he joined the chorus of designers complaining that the timing of New York Fashion Week does no service to American men’s wear, and announced that, going forward, he would show in Milan.

“The whole global expansion is super important to our brand right now,” Varvatos said. “Going there puts us on an international stage.”

And this time, it’s going to be different.

“We’ve matured as a brand, we have our act together a lot more and I think the collection is at a whole different level than it was then. It’s much more focused and definitely more upscale. We wouldn’t be going if we didn’t feel like we had something new to say about our brand,” he said. “We worked harder than ever on every detail of this collection to make it compelling.”

He feels it’s more contemporary, playful and sophisticated than previous collections.

“It’s different from any we’ve ever done, and we’re treating it differently. Not only does it deal with the customers we have, but we’re going to attract a lot of new customers.”

The perception of John Varvatos, of course, is that of a rock ’n’ roll brand. The designer always has aligned himself with hard rock, and its elder statesmen embrace him back, posing for his ads and attending his shows and benefit concerts.

His store on New York’s Bowery, in the former site of the seminal rock club CBGB, generates both public relations and sales. And he is starting to host a monthly radio show on Sirius satellite radio called “Born in Detroit.”

Varvatos ads have depicted Iggy Pop, Alice Cooper, Velvet Revolver and Slash. But for spring, they’re taking a younger approach, with the Scottish band Franz Ferdinand.

The brand already is distributed in at least 19 countries, and it just moved a showroom from London to Milan. Though an economic crisis might seem like an odd time to get aggressive about global expansion, Varvatos says business has been outstanding.

“Our stores in the U.S. had comp increases in December — every single store, and some as high as 33 percent. So we’re in a good place, and we feel it’s a good

time to be cautiously aggressive, though we know it’s not going to be easy. We’re doing well across the board from tailored, outerwear and leathers to footwear — our biggest growth category — and sportswear continues to be the driver. Star USA [the younger diffusion line] is on fire. It’s going to finish the year up about 40 percent. Collection is up 19 percent, and footwear is almost doubled.” (The brand has a lucrative collaboration with Converse.)

The Bowery store, which was conceived as “an aura thing,” is 83 percent ahead of plan, and the fourth best performing of the brand’s 10 stores. It has created goodwill toward Varvatos, despite putting a final nail in the coffin of some New Yorkers’ dreams of keeping the Bowery ungentrified.

“It almost changed the complexion of the company,” the designer said. “We’ve been on a roll since we started the brand — I have to pinch myself every year. But it was like a rocket ship last year, and not just about the buzz, but it was a credibility factor. Tourists came from around the world and got a different perception of the brand than they had before.”

Indeed, with its preservation efforts, concert series and charity fund-raising, the store proves Varvatos’ dedication to helping musicians.

“People keep asking when I’m going to roll it out. But I don’t want to commercialize it, I want to protect it,” he said.

He intends to open comparable stores in other cities, but they’ll celebrate their own local identity and music history, not the Bowery’s.

“You can’t fake it. It has to have a real music connec— John Varvatos tion, and be a place where we can promote music. Austin is number one on my list. It’s the best music place in America right now,” he said.

But first, overseas markets beckon. “We do well in Dubai, Turkey, the Eastern Bloc and Russia. Going to Milan will help us in the Far East, as well. We just launched a partnership in Korea in September and opened a number of amazing shop-in-shops over there. We’re really expanding there and getting more aggressive in the Far East, with Japan and Hong Kong.”

Varvatos designed for Polo Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein before he launched his own line in 2000. It was bought by Nautica, which was in turn acquired by VF Corp. In 2005, he entered into a new partnership with VF called John Varvatos Enterprises, where he serves as chief executive officer.

“Our fragrance business continues to rock. We’re introducing a second women’s fragrance, because of the success of the first one, and a new men’s fragrance, called Artisan, with a beautiful hand-woven bottle design,” he said, noting that it’s coming out in March.

Varvatos added, “Cautious is the way you run your business. I don’t think you can be cautious about your product. You gotta make it exciting.”

wouldn’t be going if “weWedidn’t feel like we had something new to say about our brand.­­

”

14 WWD, THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2009 SECTION II

WWD.COM

WWD MEN’S COLLECTIONS PREVIEW

Backstage at Neil Barrett.

CAVALLI PHOTO BY GIOVANNI GIANNONI; OTHERS BY DAVE YODER

Roberto Rimondi and Tommaso Aquilano, working on their first collection for Gianfranco Ferré.

Tailoring at Brioni.

Roberto Cavalli

Milan Gets Ready Designers prepare for an abbreviated fashion week.

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ommaso quilano and oberto imondi launching their first men’s collection for Gianfranco Ferré. “ here is always a bit of risk involved when doing something for the first time, but that’s the role of the designer: to propose new ideas and [in this case] to find a balance with Ferré’s history,” quilano said. livier Gerber, sales and marketing director at the Four easons in ilan, said the hotel is seeing a 20 percent drop in reservations compared with the same period of last year. “ ost people canceled very early in time, but we’re certainly feeling the impact of a smaller U. . presence because it was the market with the strongest turnout,” Gerber said.

Visitors most likely won’t get to see the city blanketed in white stuff, as it was recently because snowstorms aren’t on the horizon. ut that still doesn’t mean getting to and from — or around — taly’s fashion capital will be easy. For example, alpensa airport has seen the number of direct flights cut back now that ir France has taken a stake in litalia, so landing there will be more challenging than ever. Buon giorno!

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Easy do s it. hat’s th mood h r as th city, hit by a cold snap, preps for ilan Fashion Week. nd given the global recession, forget glitz, hype and pomp as designers opt for realism over surrealism. ambianco study issued Wednesday confirmed fashion and luxury goods companies are in for a tough first half, stressing that the dismal outlook makes everyone hope all the investment in overseas markets will generate results. “ egardless of the year-end mini rally, the evaluation of publicly listed fashion companies is at historical minimum, with a drop in profits of between 30 to 40 percent expected for 2009,” the report stated. t’s no surprise, then, that the schedule is a day shorter versus the original plan of five days, primarily the consequence of dropouts. Fendi, arni and Valentino all nixed runway shows in favor of low-key presentations, some for buyers only. mong the numerous designers who went from a fashion show to nothing are omeo Gigli, ntonio arras, Krizia Uomo, aura iagiotti and alvin Klein, who will show in ew ork. verall, 18 shows or presentations were canceled altogether. here are still newcomers to watch, though, from John Varvatos making a return to ilan, to

— Alessandra Ilari and Vanessa Silva

www.lanvin.com

16 WWD, THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2009 SECTION II

WWD.COM

WWD MEN’S COLLECTIONS PREVIEW Josh Beech (D’Management) is his agency’s most wanted this season.

Petey Wright (Ford) won VMan magazine’s model search.

Jakob Wiechmann (Ford) has walked for Diesel and Obedient Sons.

Lasse Pedersen (DNA) just shot a Lacoste campaign.

Test Models

Doug Jewell (DNA and D’Management) will be in the next Jil Sander testimonial.

Amid a polarizing trend, some new faces will shine — or flame out — on Europe’s runways.

By Jean Scheidnes

Vladimir Ivanov (Wilhelmina) is the younger brother of Andrey Ivanov.

Adrian Bosch (Ford) has been in ads for Tse and Hugo Boss.

IT’S HARD OUT THERE FOR A MODEL. THE FASHION INDUStry offers less work to go around these days, as a shrinking economy means fewer and shorter shoots with smaller budgets.

The new realities are altering the type of model who’s in demand as Milan and Paris gear up for the men’s shows.

“We know there’s not enough work for all the talent out there,” said Greg Chan, a senior agent with Wilhelmina. “Very few agencies are taking on talent right now. If we do take someone, we better be sure of him and be ready to push the hell out of him.”

Commercial appeal has increased in importance.

“In this economic climate, clients more than ever are counting on the right model to sell their clothes, not just to have a cool moment. They should be able to sell clothes and clean up well. And I believe clients will move away from the ultrayoung boys, because it’s not what the luxury buyer connects with, ultimately,” Chan said.

That doesn’t mean models can get by with generic good looks, of course. Agencies always look for striking and intriguing faces.

“A lot of them are coming from France and northern Europe now,” said Boris Radovanovic, an agent with D’Management of Milan.

“We always look for something new,” Radovanovic added.

“Younger guys are not only fresher, but they cost less than famous guys. So now, when the economy is going down, clients are choosing more new faces than top models.”

Taylor Hendrich, an agent with DNA in New York, has witnessed a polarizing effect. “The department stores that tended to go more classic have started to take a chance on a trendier look instead of the safe, classic direction,” he said. Meanwhile, “a lot of advertising companies who used younger, editorial boys in the past are going more masculine, to show their presence,” he said, citing Prada as an example.

“I also think this will be a huge moment for black models,” he added. “The European agencies have been calling for, and responding to, the black models. So I hope that will be evident on the runways.”

None of the emerging models whose headshots the agencies provided are black, but, according to Hendrich, black models who have been around a while are having a resurgence.

Here, 22 models poised to rise in stature at the European shows, according to five of the top agencies.

Simon Nessman (Major) has shot Givenchy with Willy Vanderperre.

Baptiste Giabiconi (DNA) has been working a lot with Karl Lagerfeld.

Drew Jenkins (Wilhelmina) will appear in Alexander McQueen and Z Zegna ads this spring.

Aaron Bruckner (Major) was shot by Mario Testino for D&G Cruise.

Andrey Ivanov (Wilhelmina) booked a campaign exclusively for Trussardi.

Matvey Lykov (D’Management) has been the face of Jil Sander.

George Barnett (D’Management) has appeared in Lanvin ads.

Tomek Szmulewicz (DNA) just shot a CK Jeans campaign.

James Hampson (DNA) will walk exclusively for Prada in Milan.

Joan Pedrola (Major) was shot by Mario Testino for D&G Cruise.

Devin Childers (Wilhelmina) recently shot Calvin Klein campaigns.

Julian Hennig (Ford) was shot for VMan by Will Davidson.

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF MODELS’ AGENCIES

Clement Chabernaud (D’Management) is in the running for the most shows this season.

Mathias Bergh (Wilhelmina) will walk exclusively for Gucci in Milan.

Patrick Rukai (Major) is American.

V I RT U O S O M E N S W E A R

RAFFAELE CARUSO - SORAGNA ITALY

18 WWD, thursday, january 15, 2009 SECTION II

WWD.COM

WWD Men’s collections preview

Ferragamo’s Man With men’s in growth mode, designer Massimiliano Giornetti turns his focus from opulence to tradition.

Massimiliano Giornetti

signer, you have to keep in mind social change. You can’t live in a golden cage.”

Hence, Giornetti has given the Ferragamo man a more sober face — casual and elegant but in tune with current economic times. Last season, he made an opulent journey through Rajasthan; for his fall collection, the designer drew inspiration from Scandinavia.

“Men’s wear is about construction and materials. With that in mind, I traveled to Stockholm and Copenhagen. I find the city’s architecture intriguing.

It’s extremely modern in the sense that they really link their past with their future,” Giornetti said, citing Copenhagen’s Opera House and its jet-black, plateaulike roof. “It’s perfectly integrated into the city. It’s edgy but user-friendly, and I think in men’s fashion we should have the same evolution. I started my collection from there.”

His fall color scheme ranges from muted darkchocolate browns, blacks and navy to evocative rust, ocher and mustard tones — for which Giornetti referenced Danish painter Vilhelm Hammershøi’s “poetic” approach. “Faded colors are reflective,” he noted.

Oversized proportions and cocooning shapes, especially in outerwear, add to the collection’s relaxed and comforting vibe. Giornetti called the look “a modernday Oliver Twist.”

“It’s not a sad season, but a more reflective season,” he said. “There is a moral obligation, which is very important to me, of going back to Ferragamo’s artisanal tradition, where Salvatore Ferragamo began.

“The collection focuses on strong solid values about heritage and tradition,” Giornetti continued. “I was very interested in working the artisanal aspects and traditional handmade methods. It’s important for big brands to preserve their artisanal tradition, which sadly is always the first to disappear.”

To that end, Giornetti’s fall collection also features handmade knitwear, contrasting piping and visible details in tailoring to underline “the origins of the tailoring craft.” This fits an economic climate in which consumers are turning away from conspicuous consumption, he said.

“This is not a moment for showing off,” said Giornetti, readjusting a bracelet on his wrist, also one of his designs. (A son of a goldsmith, Giornetti believes accessories — especially shoes — remain growth categories for the company.)

“People are paying more attention to what they

MILAN — It’s not yet 9:30 a.m. when Massimiliano Giornetti arrives at Ferragamo’s offices here, fresh from his triweekly game of tennis.

“It’s important to do something special for yourself in the morning and the evening,” the 37-year-old said, smiling. “I tend to start my day early.”

In Giornetti’s professional life, that discipline has paid off. Since his appointment as men’s wear designer at Ferragamo in June 2000, his efforts to update the collection with leaner, sharper and younger styles have helped the men’s category swell to more than 35 percent of total sales.

According to Ferragamo chief executive officer Michele Norsa, men’s is now growing faster than women’s, and shows “greater potential” for further expansion.

“Before [Giornetti’s] arrival, the men’s wear category didn’t have a clear direction. This has changed,” Norsa said, citing marked improvement “not just with the collection itself but also the global image.” On the retail level, Ferragamo’s Fifth Avenue New York flagship recently converted a 1,000-square-foot gallery space into a tailored clothing room — what Giornetti Looks from Ferragamo’s fall referred to as a “men’s wear gallery” — that offers traditional services for men.

Born in Carrara, Italy, but raised in Florence, Giornetti earned a degree in foreign languages and literature at the University of Florence before taking a fashion course at that city’s Polimoda Institute of Fashion Design and Marketing. He started his career as an assistant designer of women’s haute couture for Anton Giulio Grande, a family-run knitwear label in Rome, and eventually took the creative reins. Then, nine years ago, he joined Ferragamo, where he has become known for blurring the boundaries between formal and casualwear.

“My aim and challenge is creating a new ready-to-wear aesthetic for men,” said Giornetti, clad head-to-toe in Ferragamo: a fitted black jacket, white shirt, jeans and black patent leather shoes.

“Ferragamo started with shoes, then women’s ready-to-wear. It was an evolution, and that’s what I plan to do: evolve with the customer,” he said. “As a de-

2009 collection. buy. They are buying to make an investment, something you can wear for seasons to come. Men are more realistic that way,” he explained later, on a tour of the Ferragamo store on Via Montenapoleone, in the heart of Milan’s Golden Triangle shopping district.

From accessories and ready-to-wear to formalwear and made-to-measure, Giornetti circled through each department, singling out bestsellers and conducting what he calls “social research” — observing consumer behavior.

“I’m interested in mixing things. I love classic, something elegant. But nonchalant fashion for me is luxury to enjoy, even if designers are proposing iconic pieces for the season.

“You can express your personality, but it’s important to be realistic with your look,” he added. “If you’re not a movie star, you should not dress like one.”

Giornetti photo by sakis lalas; all others by Giovanni Giannoni

By Emilie Marsh

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20 WWD, THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2009 SECTION II

wwd men’s COLLECTIONS preview

Collective Intelligence

ones watch

Merged under one roof, The Collective and Blue offer relaunched brands and hot newcomers.

By Brenner Thomas Consumers love a two-for-one, and ENK is hoping retailers will, too.

The market is about to get its first look at the consolidated Collective and Blue trade shows, which kick off this Sunday. The expos, held in adjacent piers for many seasons, will both take place at Pier 94 this year, The Collective’s traditional home.

Although housed in the same space, Blue will remain autonomous within Pier 94 through distinct signage and design, according to ENK. The show will be cordoned off within the Matinique returns to the U.S. south wing of the pier and will retain its minimal, with sleek, affordable clothes. single-aisle layout.

The 40 vendors exhibiting at Blue, two of which are highlighted here, include luxe classification players like Christopher Fischer, better denim companies like Hudson Jeans and established contemporary brands such as Converse by John Varvatos and Relwen.

The Collective, meanwhile, continues to expand its offering as the tastes of classic, luxury and contemporary consumers merge. In addition to denim stalwart Earnest Sewn Co., venerable tailoring clothing resources like S. Cohen, and a host of high-end Italian vendors, the event will showcase new boutique specialists and a few dusty but distinguished brands that are using the show for a relaunch. Here, some of the notable newbies.

NEW AT THE COLLECTIVE Harris Tweed

The nubby, hairy, color-flecked wool known as Harris Tweed is unlike any other in the world. The English Parliament ensures it.

A popular textile since Victorian times, the venerable fabric is regulated by the U.K. government, which dictates that it must be handwoven of pure virgin wool by the islanders of the Outer Hebrides, a chain of windswept islands off of Scotland’s northwest coast.

Despite its long heritage, the Harris Tweed industry was almost lost when the islands’ biggest mill was put up for sale a few years ago. In 2006, English textile entrepreneur Brian Haggas purchased the mill with the aim not only of saving the fabric, but also of fashioning the distinctive tweed into a global apparel brand.

This season marks the American launch of Harris Tweed’s first line of apparel, a range of four sport coats cut in the classic fabric. “Sadly, for many years the marketing of our [Harris Tweed] industry has been neglected,” Haggas said. “Everybody knows it and speaks well of it. It’s our plan to relaunch and reinvent it.”

For those whom Harris Tweed conjures up stodgy professors in stiff, scratchy jackets, Haggas said his mill has lightened and softened the fabric. “The name has all this romance; we just needed to update it.”

The Eighties really are back.

Matinique, the Swedish brand that rang up north of $80 million in the U.S. during the Reagan era, is making a play for the American market once again with a line of sleek and slim, moderately priced men’s apparel.

Already well-established in Europe, Matinique returned to the States with a soft launch last season. Now the brand, owned by IC Cos. AS, an apparel conglomerate based in Copenhagen, is making its Collective debut with a core line of mixand-match tailored separates, clean denim and slim-fitting wovens.

“Things have gotten way too casual,” said Todd Katz of Kudo Group, Matinique’s distributor in the U.S. “Guys wear jeans and Chuck Taylors to events and think it’s okay. We think Matinique is going to ride a trend toward both affordable and more tailored clothing.”

Blazers, which will feature German wools and linen blends, start at $240. The updated range of denim begins at $90.

“We use a lot of classic patterns, like plaids or twills, but twist them through different colorations and a much leaner silhouette,” Katz said. “We’re not a premium brand. We’re about affordable fashion.”

Zachary Prell

He widened the cuff to accommodate the vogue for large watches. And he shortened the body and slimmed the silhouette to satisfy his desire for a shirt “that fit athletic bodies and could be worn to work and after hours.”

Since then, the line has expanded to include patterned wovens, a range of pricier Italian shirtings, short- and long-sleeve polos and a collection of cuff links.

At The Collective, Prell will show some 50 shirts, which will emphasize textured patterns, plaids and stripes in blues and browns.

“I consider men’s wear a challenge to improve not only the look but the function of everyday garments,” said Prell, who has sold his line to Nordstrom and Scoop. “Even if guys aren’t aware of their issues with their shirts, once they try ours on they will see and feel a difference.

Solid shirts retail for $165; better fabrics go up to $245.

Scott Kay

Heavy, masculine jewelry from Scott Kay. Left: A Harris Tweed sportcoat.

Matinique

Financier-cum-designer Zachary Prell came to apparel with a specific but lofty goal: to perfect the men’s woven shirt.

He said years of dressing up for work revealed the shortcomings of the buttonfronts he wore: They were too long to wear untucked, the silhouette was too baggy and the button stance was awkward.

His line, a tidy selection of solid shirts that launched in 2006, offered a remedy.

He moved the top button of the shirt down to avoid what he calls “man cleavage.”

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Scott Kay wants to do to men’s jewelry what Hublot did to timepieces: make them big and luxurious.

The brand, well known in the women’s bridal market, launched its line of men’s jewelry last season with a focus on thick, heavy, highly wrought, masculine pieces based on intricate 17th century engravings. Think jewelry Charles I of England might wear.

The line, hand-carved in the U.S., has had early success and is already placed in 200 doors — gains that have prompted the brand to expand its business to independent retailers.

“This is a completely untapped category for specialty stores,” said Dan Scott, the company’s chief marketing officer. “They already have their big watch.

Now they need our statement jewelry to match.”

At the brand’s first Collective, expect to find new two-toned pieces with inlays of 18k gold and onyx as well as the brand’s staples: chains and bracelets in woven precious metals and an emphasis on the cross motif.

Simple cuff links open at $250 while larger pieces with precious stones reach into the tens of thousands.

TWO FOR BLUE Alessandro Dell’Acqua

Welcome to the house that shoes built.

Alessandro Dell’Acqua’s decade-old men’s collection business got kicked into high gear four seasons ago when he launched a line of high-tops whose retro-futuristic styling and high-gloss sheen won over both fashion’s faithful and sneaker heads.

Two years later, the designer’s footwear collection is still driving new business and brand recognition as major retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and influential boutiques like Atrium pick up the line.

“We started off with a classic line of footwear and it did fine, but the sneaker collection has become a global business for this brand,” said Andrea Cecconi, vice president of Ultramoda, which reps Dell’Acqua’s signature Dell’Acqua’s footwear collection in the U.S. silvery sneakers.

The shoes are making their New York trade show debut at Blue with updates to Dell’Acqua’s signature silvery kicks. Expect a greater mix of color and materials this season, in addition to his classic patent leather and metallic high tops, which start at $300 retail.

“We feel there’s still a lot of opportunity in the U.S. and not just within the contemporary market,” Cecconi said.

The footwear line also includes a less outrageous range of classic casual styles.

Commonwealth Utilities

Launching a fashion line is a little bit easier when you’ve got a hot creative agency behind it.

Commonwealth Utilities, which will be showing its sophomore collection at Blue, is the brainchild of designer Anthony Keegan and Richard Christensen, the founder of Chandelier Creative, the hip marketing agency with clients like Givenchy and Old Navy. Those kinds of contacts help open doors for a fledgling brand, and having free creative input from the staff, whose ranks include Larenzo Martone, Marc Jacobs’ current beau, doesn’t hurt either.

Still, Commonwealth Utilities is about the design, according to Keegan, himself no slacker, with stints on the design staffs at Giorgio Armani, Donna Karan and Versace. “Basically we want to dress up a dress-down nation,” he said of the collection’s attenuated evening suits, oversized bow ties and tuxedo shorts.

“When we launched, we focused on basics, but now we want to address clothing that is a little more sexy with a bit of humor.”

An example of the latter: the giant oversized hooded puffer, a piece Keegan calls the antimedia jacket. “It’s big enough that you could hide from the paparazzi in it.”

Smart style for any celebrity, or even an aspiring one.

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wwd men’s COLLECTIONS preview Gant’s cotton and polyester jacket and wool and Lycra pants; Dunhill’s wool cardigan.

Alashan Cashmere scarf; Calvin Klein shoes.

In the Mix PHOTOS BY ROBERT MITRA; MODEL: DAVID/VNY; HAIR AND MAKEUP BY ANNA BERNABE AT CLINIQUE; FASHION ASSISTANT: LUIS CAMPUZANO; STYLED BY ALEX BADIA

Traditional pieces from trenchcoats to flannel slacks blend easily with denim and cropped jackets at The Collective and Blue, where key looks for fall strike a balance between youthfulness and sophistication.

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Gant’s polyestervest, vest;Relwen Relwen’s polyester blazer Gant polyester polyester blazer and cotton jeans, cottonshirt. shirt. pants, Matinique’s Matinique cotton

Autumn Cashmere’s cotton sweater; Commonwealth Utilities’ shirt and jeans, both in cotton, and linen bow tie.

s

Commonwealth Utilities’ wool blazer; Alashan Cashmere’s turtleneck; Dunning’s wool pants.

L.B.M. 1911’s leather jacket; Matinique’s cotton shirt; Barbour’s cotton and polyester pants. Christopher Fischer gloves.

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wwd men’s collections preview

Premium Blend

Project and Capsule will showcase over 400 directional men’s brands.

By David Lipke Indie designers, premium denim and contemporary sportswear are the focus at the Project and Capsule shows in New York next week, with the former staged from Sunday to Tuesday at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and the latter on Monday and Tuesday at the Angel Orensanz Foundation Center.

While the economy has thinned out the exhibitor list somewhat, you can still expect about 350 brands at Project and 70 at Capsule. Here, highlights of some of the newest and most compelling lines at the two shows.

Project New York Aether

Jonah Smith and Palmer West are successful L.A. film producers, having brought to the screen fare such as “Religulous,” “Requiem for a Dream,” “A Scanner Darkly” and “The Clearing.” But the avid outdoorsmen decided to launch their own activewear brand, called Aether, last year when they couldn’t find performance apparel that blended stylishly into urban environments.

“We’re weekend warriors and we felt there weren’t any brands out there that spoke specifically to us,” said Smith. “We wanted to use technical advancements for clothes that strike a balance between form and function, for a guy slightly north of 25 years old.”

The result is a collection launching to consumers on an e-commerce site on Feb. 1, and first wholesaled to retailers at Project. The lineup includes seam-sealed jackets suitable for snowboarding, casual hoodies and polos, and a waxed canvas jacket insulated with Primaloft that will retail for $1,095, the top price point in the collection. “It’s a super-lightweight puffer jacket that doesn’t make you look like you’re on a lift line,” noted West.

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Current/Elliott

Looking for the next hot name in denim? Current/ Elliott may be the ticket. Founded by L.A.-based fashion stylists and longtime friends Emily Current and Meritt Elliott in July 2007, the brand is already stocked at trend-forward doors like Barneys New York, Neiman Marcus, Ron Herman, Atrium, Scoop and Colette in Paris.

Helping things along is financial backer Serge Azria, who also owns the Joie contemporary brand and is the older brother of BCBG’s Max Azria.

While the new brand has caught on quickly, Current is quick to point out the company doesn’t intend to be a flash in the pan. “We aren’t trend-based at all,” she explained.

Rather, Current/Elliott’s point of differentiation is its authentic vintage washes and ultrasoft fabrics, for both men and women.

“The whole philosophy is about comfort, so there’s a slouch element to all the fits and styles,” said Current. “We spent a long time getting our fabrics as soft as possible, there’s almost a fuzz to them.” Retail prices range from $178 to $350, with men’s product comprising about 20 percent of sales and women’s at 80 percent.

ones watch

Aether

Timo

Unruly Heir

Incorporating its signature rebellious wit into its designs, youthful New York brand Unruly Heir is taking the recession head-on with the spring collection it will showcase for immediate orders at Project. T-shirts are adorned with prints like a bull and bear holding onto the Statue of Liberty for dear life as she sinks into New York harbor. A cap is stamped with a “Foreclosed” logo, while a polo shirt features a chest logo of a bull being speared and another T-shirt shows a gentleman playing polo while riding a messenger bike.

In another nod to the economy, prices for the collection have been brought down 30 percent, with Ts wholesaling for $16 to $19, polos for $35 and hoodies for $85. “We didn’t want to riff on the economy and then have exorbitant prices,” pointed out sales director David Rowan. Unruly Heir is currently sold at Bloomingdale’s, Fred Segal Fun, Kitson and Brooklyn’s Rime.

Rossignol + J.C. de Castelbajac

French designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and French skiwear firm Rossignol have collaborated on an outerwear collection for about five years, and that line will debut at Project New York for the first time this season. The collaboration melds Rossignol’s expertise in technical skiwear design and Castelbajac’s design vision, with the average jacket retailing for about $500.

For fall 2009 there are Lego-prints (via a partnership with the iconic Danish toy maker), shiny wetlook jackets, and gold and lurex threads woven into fabrics for a hyper-chic look. All the outerwear features technical elements ready for the slopes, like Lycra wrist cuffs, powder skirts, waterproof zippers, Gore-Tex fabrics and Thinsulate linings.

The Rossignol + J.C. de Castelbajac collection is currently sold in about 20 ski shops in the U.S., and the brand is aiming to enter more fashion retailers with its showing at Project, according to France Lessard, Rossignol’s marketing manager for soft goods in North America.

Timo

New York designer Timo Weiland’s fanciful neckwear isn’t for retiring types. The oversize bibs in perforated leather and elaborately ruffled satin collars that drape around the neck are as extravagant as Elizabethan ruffs. About as far from a boring necktie as you can get, the inventive designs add an immediate splash of drama to any guy’s — or gal’s — outfit.

“I’ve been obsessed with neckwear since I was a boy. It’s so versatile and it allows you to easily change up your look,” said Weiland, 25, who studied business at Vanderbilt and worked in a training program at Deutsche Bank before turning his focus to fashion.

He allows his more outré styles can veer toward the androgynous and are for those modern guys who don’t mind sharing the pieces with their best girlfriends.

The debut collection — which was feted with a swanky Interview magazine-sponsored bash at the Phillips de Pury auction house in November — includes 34 designs in seven silhouettes, including some traditional four-in-hand ties and bow ties, albeit in paper-thin leather.

The pieces will retail from $75 for a classic style up to $1,300 for special designs created in partnership with Weiland’s jewelry-making pals, Lizzie and Kathryn Fortunato.

S2VS

Capsule New York April77

April77 was established in Grenoble, France, in 2001, but founder and designer Brice Partouche takes his inspiration from Americana and produces his trendy jeans in Japan — creating product that’s the best of all worlds. The denim retails for about $350, and has found its way into top U.S. specialty stores including Barneys New York, Blackbird, American Rag Cie and Seven.

The company has also launched a lower-priced basics line of jeans under its new April77 Records label, with denim retailing for about $140. As a unique selling point, each April77 Records item comes packaged with a code that allows the customer to download free music from the brand’s Web site.

“Music, youth movements and underground culture have always been the main inspiration for my design,” explained Partouche, adding he started his business because Grenoble is a boring town in the Alps.

The brand is sold out of the Archetype Showroom in New York. About 75 percent of April77’s sales are in denim and 25 percent in sportswear, with men’s product comprising 70 percent of sales and women’s 30 percent. Outside the U.S., April77 is sold in about 500 stores, including Selfridges, Dover Street Market and Lane Crawford.

Looks from the April77 Records line.

S2VS

New York designer Sean William Salim boasts a peripatetic background: He was born in Indonesia, raised in Singapore, and then attended five different colleges in the U.S. before settling down at Parsons The New School for Design to study men’s wear design. After interning with Isaac Mizrahi and Tim Hamilton, he’s started his own label, called S2VS, which is a creative riff on his name.

The line is inspired by utilitarian themes, particularly the layered look of the industrial 1900s, which Salim thinks is quite appropriate for the current recessionary times. For fall, signature design elements include three-quarter-length sleeves on dress shirts, hoodies and henleys.

“People always roll up their sleeves, so I thought I’d do it for them,” explained Salim.

Outerwear tends to be the line’s strongest sellers, with a wool, belted trenchcoat with epaulets retailing for about $800. Jeans retail for $150 to $200, T-shirts for $80 and knit sweaters for $200 to $300. S2VS is currently sold in about 14 doors, including Oak, Base and Blackbird. The line is sold out of New York’s Archetype Showroom.

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Rough Cut Distressed leather, beefy knits, buffalo plaids — sportswear at Project New York has adopted a rugged look for fall, as a workwear influence shows up in everything from jeans to jackets.

Artful Dodger’s leather jacket, 55 DSL’s wool and acrylic sweater and Union’s cotton pants.

PHOTOS BY ROBERT MITRA; MODELS: JORDAN B/RE:QUEST AND NICK BUSH/FORD; HAIR AND MAKEUP BY ANNA BERNABE AT CLINIQUE; STYLED BY ALEX BADIA AND LUIS CAMPUZANO

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wwd men’s collections preview CPT by Cockpit’s wool and leather jacket, Reebok’s cotton sweater and 55 DSL’s cotton and spandex jeans.

Rough Cut

K-Swiss’ wool jacket, Howe’s cotton shirt and Loomstate’s cotton and spandex pants.

White + Warren scarf.

Canada Goose’s polyester and cotton jacket, Ben Sherman’s cotton T-shirt and Converse

by John Varvatos’ cotton pants.

Victorinox Swiss Army’s wool and nylon jacket, CPT

by Cockpit’s wool and cotton vest, Ben Sherman’s cotton shirt and Howe’s cotton jeans.

PHOTOS BY ROBERT MITRA; MODELS: JORDAN B/RE:QUEST AND NICK BUSH/FORD; HAIR AND MAKEUP BY ANNA BERNABE AT CLINIQUE; STYLED BY ALEX BADIA AND LUIS CAMPUZANO

Orthodox’s leather jacket and Mavi’s cotton jeans.

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WWD Men’s collections preview Fiber & Fellow’s wool and viscose jacket with Lova’s cotton shirt and pants. Timo bow tie.

Fred Perry’s jacket and polo shirt with Lova’s pants, all in cotton.

Penfield’s polyester jacket worn with No Mas’ sweater, Kidrobot’s shirt and Wrath Arcane’s pants, all in cotton.

Forward March Advanced fashion will set the pace at the rapidly growing Capsule show. Still, the mood this season is retail-friendly. Among the key pieces to look for: thick knits, shawl-collar jackets and mackintosh coats.

PHOTOS BY ROBERT MITRA; MODEL: JAK/NEW YORK MODELS; HAIR AND MAKEUP BY ANNA BERNABE AT CLINIQUE; STYLED BY LUIS CAMPUZANO

Gilded Age’s cotton coat, Victor Glemaud’s wool and cashmere turtleneck and Carlos Campos’ cotton pants.

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WWD MEN’S COLLECTIONS PREVIEW

Pitti Kicks Off Fall

Models in Henry Cotton’s.

PHOTOS BY DAVIDE MAESTRI

As exhibitors target a younger, more fashion-forward consumer, the latest edition of Pitti Uomo reflects a trade show in transition.

By Emilie Marsh and Jean Scheidnes FLORENCE — Dawn has broken over fall 2009 as the first luxury collections of the

new season were revealed this week to a deeply anxious retail industry at Pitti Immagine Uomo here, the world’s premier trade show for high-end men’s wear.

As the global economy continued its painful digestion of the U.S. home-lending crisis, vendors and retailers alike faced the new season with equal parts trepidation and optimism.

“The truly artisanal Italians really, really stepped it up, adding new product categories, new details, and really differentiating the product and making it compelling for the customer,” said Tommy Fazio, fashion director of Bergdorf Goodman Men’s. “So I think there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. And I must say Pitti Uomo is still very important for us. There are always these great factories here, and that’s how we create our proprietary Bergdorf Goodman Collection.”

Across the grounds of the Fortezza da Basso, vendors offered tightly focused collections inside scaled-down booths, which, in recent seasons, had been bursting with miscellaneous merchandise. At the same time, vendors were intent on broadening their appeal, especially if it could help them attract a younger, more cost-conscious or more fashion-forward customer.

Pitti, as it’s called, has historically served as the cocktail hour before the banquet of men’s runway shows, whetting buyers’ appetites with classically luxurious men’s wear based on traditional European tailoring.

But Pitti itself is in transition as some of the big brands that served as its tra-

am looking for brands that stand the test “of Itime and that are innovative in reinterpreting themselves. ”

— Eric Jennings, Saks Fifth Avenue

ditional anchors — including Ermenegildo Zegna, Canali, Brioni and Hugo Boss — have graduated to independent showrooms and runways, leaving a vacuum that largely has been filled with contemporary sportswear brands. Those still rub shoulders with traditional luxury brands, albeit somewhat awkwardly, and more departures — namely Kiton, Isaia and Hackett — could be imminent.

One sign of sportswear’s ascendancy at Pitti was the crowding for Woolrich John Rich & Bros., the historic American brand revived by WP Lavori in Corso of Bologna. The popular Italian collection of contemporary sportswear and outerwear became available to the U.S. for the first time.

“Pitti has become a great place for sportswear,” said Eric Jennings, men’s fashion director of Saks Fifth Avenue.

“I’m looking for versatile, hybrid, multifunctional, high-value pieces. What’s selling for us is modern things with slimmer silhouettes, so that’s what we’re looking for. And personally, I am looking for brands that stand the test of time and

Four looks from Brunello Cucinelli. that are innovative in reinterpreting themselves, making themselves modern and relevant, like Woolrich has.”

Henry Cotton’s, a 31-year-old brand of tweedy British sportswear, launched a much-expanded collegiate division called Henry Cotton’s University. As the exclusive Italian licensee of Harvard and Oxford Universities, it incorporated the schools’ names and trademarks in a preppy line that it not only markets generally, but also that the universities will carry in their campus outlets. Henry Cotton’s also plans to establish scholarships and intercollegiate competitions between the two universities. Bleachers full of models dressed as rugby players loomed over visitors to Henry Cotton’s exhibition space.

The new focus on sportswear at Pitti has pushed tailored brands to increase their casual and more youthful offerings.

“We wanted a young spirit, something fresh, not flamboyant, something romantic and idealistic to fit the return to a simpler way of life,” mused Brunello Cucinelli, known as the “industrial philosopher.”

Continued on page 34

Photo C. Chaize

The World’s Premier Fabric Show™/ Parc d’Expositions Paris-Nord Villepinte - France / From Tuesday 10 to Friday 13 February 2009 - Première Vision c/o France Ligne Inc. - Tel. : (1) 203 698 7460 premierevision@franceligne.com / www.premierevision.fr

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WWD Men’s collections previeW Want Les Essentiels de la Vie

Kiton

Distribuited by Dragone Ltd/M5 Showroom 375 West Broadway_ Suite 501_ New York, NY 10012_ 212 334 4744 www.cpcompany.com

Continued from page 32 That meant slimmer silhouettes and more casual elements such as T-shirts, dress shirts worn without ties and knitted outerwear for a more relaxed look.

“The collection is much more sporty,” he said. Even the formalwear had an underlining laissez-faire feel.

Tuxedos, for example, came in light gray or navy flannel and were paired with suede shoes in camel tones.

Cucinelli unveiled the label’s first footwear line at the fair. It plans to roll out four stores this year — in Athens, Rome, Atlanta and Tokyo.

“Brunello Cucinelli had great suiting and sportswear. It’s a younger look, but it’s definitely very chic,” said Tom Kalenderian, general merchandising manager for men’s wear at Barneys New York.

Kalenderian, who also applauded Cruciani for its “youthfulness” and Fedeli’s sexy and sophisticated collection, said he was placing orders and was optimistic overall. “We have a very big job to activate consumer appetite in the third quarter. The whole team is here with guns blazing, looking for ideas and ammunition and to come back with as many new concepts as possible,” he added.

Braemar, a century-old label dormant since the Nineties, has been given a fresh lease on life by its new owner, Massimiliano Zegna Baruffa (a distant relation of men’s wear dynast Ermenegildo Zegna), who acquired the brand and a controlling stake in J.J. & H.B. 1788 Cashmere Mills Ltd. in October. The 230-year-old Scottish mill, the oldest in continued activity in Scotland, produces the Braemar label as well as intarsia knitwear for leading design labels.

“There is a real demand for handmade products with real value and heritage,” Zegna Baruffa said, adding that one piece could take up to 52 hours and retail for around 3,000 euros, or about $3,900 at current exchange.

In contrast, some brands are taking a more priceconscious approach.

Want Les Essentiels de la Vie, a brand of leather accessories favored by fashion insiders, picked a good time to reintroduce all of its bag styles in organic Turkish cotton. Prices for the cotton items with leather trim are about 40 percent lower than for the all-leather versions.

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“The mood here is a little somber, but not in all quarters,” said Holt Renfrew’s Lanita Layton, vice president and gmm for men’s and men’s footwear.

“Some booths are really busy, like [Want les Essentiels].

That’s the perfect example of stealth wealth. There’s great quality, and there’s a story. What I like at Pitti is finding those small, artisan-crafted lines that give the store a point of differentiation. And this time it’s really about those niche brands.”

To be sure, Holt Renfrew and other retailers still come to do business with key tailored clothing brands, but more of these could be leaving the Pitti nest. Isaia and Kiton both said they’d like to spread their wings and fly solo next season, leaving Pitti to look for new talent to nurture.

“We’re thinking about leaving — this season could be our last,” said president Gianluca Isaia. “We have grown, we have our own showrooms in key cities worldwide and now our first flagship, so we must consider if it is still relevant for us to be here.

“It’s still the most important show for men’s wear in the world, but in today’s climate, you have to be careful how you are spending your money, and if the results are not good, then you have to consider other options,” he added.

Kiton president Antonio Paone concurred. “We have our own distribution network in place….Today, you have to go after customers. You can’t wait for customers to come to you.” With that in mind, Kiton plans to open stores in Rome in March and Las Vegas in November.

Two more units in China also are planned before yearend. Last year, sales at Kiton increased 10 percent to 83 million euros, or $122.1 at average exchange.

Both Kiton and Isaia said they were looking to extend their customer base to a “younger” clientele with slimmer and more expressive styles. At Isaia, bright colors such as green and purple highlighted gray and brown suits, and a sports jacket was named after the seminal British punk rock band The Clash. Kiton, meanwhile, focused on slim looks for next fall and introduced five-pocket cashmere trousers in vivid tones.

Corneliani took a similarly youthful approach, with Continued on page 36

Mackintosh

Aquascutum

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WWD Men’s collections preview

Hackett Continued from page 35 its “leader jacket,” which combined a wide lapel with a slim silhouette. “It adds a modern touch,” said creative director Sergio Corneliani. The brand also unveiled a line of voluminous bags in soft leather and alligator.

Pitti Immagine general manager Raffaello Napoleone said he respected brands’ decisions to leave the fair, if need be.

“They are following their business strategy to invest in private showrooms and open flagship stores. They are not leaving Pitti to go to another trade show,” he said.

Napoleone added that attendance was at record levels — and there were 917 exhibitors, despite “a hard year” — the fruits of targeting new retailers in emerging markets.

London-based Hackett, which has occupied its own building in the center courtyard for seven sessions also, is considering its options, which could even include a Milan runway instead of the twice-yearly trip to Florence.

“We’re debating right now,” said managing director Vicente Castellano, citing London or Milan as the mostly likely show venues.

Hackett launched its new Mayfair collection of tailored clothing and accessories at Pitti.

“It’s a new high-end collection which mixes casual with a luxury,” explained Michael Sondag, Hackett’s creative director.

Hackett plans to open Mayfair stores in the short to medium term.

Meanwhile, it is eyeing Savile Row locations for “as soon as a good opportunity arises,” Sondag said.

Hackett also plans to continue to expand its retail reach, with its first Tokyo store penciled in for this year. The company expects to open its first U.S. store, on Madison Avenue in New York, in 2010.

Castellano said sales for the brand were up 20 percent in fiscal 2008-09 to 67 million pounds, or $124.3 million at average exchange.

A handful of established brands at Pitti attempted to present a fashion-forward visage. For example, outerwear maker Herno promoted its collaboration with designer Neil Barrett.

Additional high-fashion brands to be found at Pitti, including Comme des Garçons Homme Deux; Samsonite Black Label’s designer collaborations; Lanvin neckwear; a limited edition of Globe-Trotter luggage by Erdem; Engineered Garments; Christian Lacroix; footwear from Prada, Marc Jacobs, Givenchy and Kris Van Assche, and Thom Browne, who staged an unorthodox postmodern presentation — showing repetitions of just one look — as the fair’s featured guest designer.

Pitti’s concurrent women’s pre-collection show, another mark of its recent evolution, boasted a Giambattista Valli runway.

Luxury eyewear maker Linda Farrow offered cutting-edge designer collections from Raf Simons, Yohji Yamamoto and others. Across brands, aviators are still the best-selling style, but the latest trend is toward “geeky” plastics and futuristic metal-plastic combinations, according to press and marketing director Tracy Sedino.

Like sportswear brands, traditional outerwear brands strived for youth appeal.

Aquascutum’s spring ad campaign depicts a dozen post-adolescent couples in a make-out session. For fall, men’s creative director Graeme Fidler took a “very easy and commercial” approach, inspired by the look of actor Terrence Stamp in the 1965 thriller “The Collector.” Fidler developed dark, hand-finished suits, basic knits with distinctive pick-stitching at the shoulder seams and pared-down

Braemar Clockwise from top: Linda Farrow, Prototype and Dries Van Noten.

Corneliani

Valstar’s Valstarino.

outerwear staples including a military trench, a straight trench and a camel overcoat. Mannequins featured nylon jackets with fitted waists. Aquascutum, which is still sorting out the details of a potential management buyout, conducted business within remarkably simplified quarters.

Mackintosh, maker of English and Scottish rainwear since the 1830s, has enjoyed a revival recently, especially through strategic partnerships with designers and the retailer J. Crew. But with new Japanese ownership and 120 accounts in Japan, it is simultaneously heading in a very fashionable direction, issuing its styles in bright colors and striking fabrics, including paisleys and Liberty prints.

Valstar, which claims credit for the trenchcoat Humphrey Bogart wore in “Casablanca,” employed its own strategy for attracting younger customers. It set up a separate booth, in a separate hall, just for its Valstarino jacket, a bomber style from the Seventies that comes in a slimmer fit and 25 fabric options, including sartorial patterns, solids and leathers.

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any Italian men’s wear manufacturers its price,” he said. “This recession is a big are viewing the current economic opportunity for Italian companies to evolve slowdown as an opportunity — the perfect time in order to understand their customers and to ramp up creativity, hone service logistics, offer give them excellent service.” Below, four Italian more exclusivity and promote the men’s wear brands describe intrinsic quality of Italian-made how they are catering to today’s products. Italian men’s wear sales retailers and consumers with have enjoyed an upswing for the innovative product, enhanced Italian men’s wear is synonymous with past four years, and though 2009 services and a positive outlook versatility and excellence because Italian is expected to present a more on the future. designers strive to achieve perfection. The uncertain sales climate, industry result of their efforts is a finished product of unsurpassed quality. insiders say it could be fortuitous for those prepared to embrace the Especially in a time of global financial crisis, the best value is a quality product. That’s challenge. why Italian designs will pass the test of time In light of the economic and remain an essential distinguishing element downturn, brands should highlight in a men’s wardrobe. the value of their merchandise, said 33 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10065 Tel: 212.980.1500 Fax: 212.758.1050 Gaetano Marzotto, a Milanese newyork@newyork.ice.it www.italtrade.com Aniello Musella Executive Director for the Italian Trade Commission in the U.S. fashion business executive. “The customer has lost faith. What we need to do is give them credibility, offer something that is worth

“

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BRESCIANI Bresciani is counting on American clients’ patriotism next fall. The star of the high-end sock firm’s new collection is a pair of socks emblazoned with lyrics from “The Star-Spangled Banner” and replete with miniature American flags. The timely presentation of Bresciani’s American-themed socks at The Collective trade show will take place just as the next president is sworn into office.

Max Bresciani reckons the 28-year-old brand’s other main attraction at its booth at The Collective will be the price list. Thanks to the more favorable exchange rate between the dollar and the euro, Bresciani’s prices have been reduced by 10 to 15 percent. “It’s fantastic news in times like these,” said Bresciani.

The company has also beefed up its line and will be taking 100 designs to the show. “Despite the crisis, we remain committed to our product and our creativity, so we deliberately expanded our offering,” said Bresciani. We have recently invested in new printing technology and machinery and we’re going to build a new factory to back our production.”

Alongside the Americana model, Bresciani has whipped up other fun designs for next fall, like a pair of socks that sport a pop-art spin on Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. But Bresciani’s bread-and-butter, classic, high-quality socks in wool, silk and cashmere blends, remain the most important part of its Fall/Winter 2009 collection. Among the new classic designs are organic cashmere models tinted with natural herbal dyes, cashmere/cotton/wool blends with Scottish style tartans and diamonds, and cashmere/ silk jacquards featuring subtle micro-designs like polka dots and stripes inspired by neckwear. The

sock manufacturer has also produced its ultra-luxury deerskin and cashmere moccasin in bright hues of orange and red.

GRAN SASSO High-end knitwear looks to be a shining star on next year’s tough retail horizon. “Luxury knits are still a relatively niche industry,” explained Pierluigi Tinelli, export manager of Gran Sasso. “There are few companies that can produce this type of product, so we are not expecting to be hit as hard as other clothing categories.” Tinelli has seen the return of many customers who had bought from low-end manufacturers the previous season and were dissatisfied with the quality and service. He said the difficult retail road ahead calls for even more streamlined internal operations. “It’s not just a question of a brilliant product. Now we are fine-tuning our delivery times to get that product to clients as soon as possible,” he said.

Gran Sasso is also proposing some new cashmere-blend knits priced at 30 percent less than pure cashmere knits. For example, the brand previewed a cotton/cashmere/viscose last summer that has been updated for next fall. The chunkier version is “more wearable as it is not too hot, but still has a beautiful cashmere hand,” Tinelli said.

The sweater, like the rest of Gran Sasso’s collection, has a vintage look and feel.

Soft, washed yarns in muted tones of grey, beige, white and blue are also used to create sweaters reminiscent of those from the Sixties.

Micro motifs inspired by neckties and over-stitching decorate the front panels of some sweaters, while others have deep v-shaped necklines and display

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PEUTEREY Building on the success of its performance outerwear, which has enjoyed a loyal European following for 16 years, Peuterey is gearing up for its U.S. launch. The Tuscan-based line is laying down the foundation for its entry into the market, with a PEUTEREY

new Manhattan-based showroom and a booth at The Collective. According to Francesco Diaco, director of international operations, Peuterey targets retail partners that are high-end, multi-brand stores.

“Our style is very cool and modern, and we use exclusive technical textiles, but the silhouettes have a fashion edge,” he explained. “The combination has gotten the brand stocked in some fashionable European boutiques, so we are hoping for a similar distribution in the U.S.” Though Peuterey offers a complete men’s wear line, the label is backing its U.S. launch with its bestselling outerwear collection. “We have planned this launch for a long time and, despite the difficult times, we are surging ahead with the strategy because the product is highly positioned,” Diaco said. “We are looking to expand slowly one step at a time.”

Next fall’s looks include coats made with nylon that appears to be iridescent and tarnished, along with Peuterey’s more classic jacket shapes featuring double collars and removable linings. Colors include black and brown blended with steel grays and blues. Meanwhile, more contemporary blazers, field jackets and parka designs utilize a mix of materials like wool, cotton and shiny nylon, which are sometimes quilted.

www.bresciani.it

PEROFIL Printed with a paisley pattern in a graphic combination of black, white and cobalt blue, Perofil’s new brief design sums up the mood of its Fall 2009 underwear collection: classic with a contemporary twist. According to Maurizio Fontana, export manager for the brand, next fall’s offerings are in line with the uncertain economic climate. “Our clients – and their customers – crave familiar things, but also want something fresh. So our underwear models and fabrics will stay the same, but we put a spin on the color and patterns for newness.”

The company has also invested in its U.S.based stock service which will enable it to deliver 20 different underwear styles in diverse colors and fabrics with ultra-short lead times. “You need to be ready to meet demand at the last minute, to keep inventory in line with sell-out,” Fontana said.

At The Collective, Perofil will show its line of cotton/Lycra® and Pima cotton boxers and briefs in black, gray, white and blues while, for next fall, the luxury innerwear label will present underwear trimmed with a decorative elastic waistband bearing pajama-like stripes and checks.

Perofil has also developed its loungewear line to cater to men who prefer to change into comfortable clothes for evenings. Roomy pants with side pockets in soft felted cotton or poplin are Perofil’s spin on loungewear for next fall. For the first

time, the brand will sell a line of jersey cotton pajama pants in check and striped patterns.

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WWD, thursDay, january 15, 2009 sECtIOn II

41

WWD.COM

WWD Men’s collections previeW

GQ Names Finalists in Men’s Wear Competition André Benjamin

Jeff Halmos and Sam Shipley.

photos by peggy sirota

GQ is unveilinG the finalists of its second annual Best new Menswear designers in america project in its february issue, on newsstands today. the initiative is in collaboration with the council of fashion designers of america and includes corporate partners levi strauss & co. and Bloomingdale’s. the finalists are andré Benjamin of Benjamin Bixby; alex carleton of Rogues Gallery; david Mullen of save Khaki; sam shipley and Jeff halmos of shipley & halmos; Robert Geller, and Yigal azrouël. the designers are all featured across eight pages in GQ’s february issue.

“We looked at 20 to 30 lines, and these are the gems among the young men’s wear designers working today,” said Jim Moore, creative director at the magazine, who oversees the selection process for the finalists. “our goal is to really elevate awareness for new men’s wear designers and help give them a chance to succeed.” the winner from among the six brands will be awarded $50,000 and the opportunity to design a capsule collection for levi’s, which will be sold at select Bloomingdale’s locations in the fall and on levi.com. additionally, the winning designer will receive business mentoring from GQ, levi’s and Bloomingdale’s. the winner will be chosen following a feb. 11 party at Rockefeller center, where the designers will present looks from their fall collections to fashion world insiders, including retailers and editors. the deciding panel is comprised of designer thom Browne; levi’s vice president of marketing Robert cameron; Bloomingdale’s vice president of fashion direction for men, home and young world Kevin harter; cfda executive director steven Kolb; GQ editor in chief Jim nelson, and Moore. “i am inspired by the creativity of this year’s finalists,” Kolb said. “now more than ever, GQ’s support

Yigal Azrouël of and investment in young talent is needed and will help propel the continued growth and stability of the american men’s wear market.” this is the second year GQ has partnered with the cfda, levi’s and Bloomingdale’s to create a prize program, but it’s the third year the magazine has carried the Best new Menswear designers feature within its pages. the winner of last year’s prize was daiki

suzuki of engineered Garments. “the levi’s brand has a long history of supporting emerging american design talent,” said cameron. “after all, it was the pioneering, innovative spirit of levi strauss that led to the invention of an american fashion icon — the original, button-fly 501 jean. We’re excited to continue in this tradition.”

— David Lipke

42 WWD, THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2009 SECTION II

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WWD MEN’S COLLECTIONS PREVIEW

Survival of the Fitters

For those who see tailoring as a dying craft, suit makers have a solution: Think global.

By Brenner Thomas THERE IS AN OLD GUARD OF TAILORS IN NEW YORK CITY WHO WILL TELL you tailoring is a dying art. They fit a common profile: born in Italy, generally in the south, where they learned the trade of suit making as apprentices before immigrating to the U.S. They are as young as 60, but many are older, and some say they are the last; that they are not being replaced.

“No one wants to be a tailor anymore,” said Pasquale DeFalco, 78, one of six master tailors at Martin Greenfield Clothiers Ltd., a suit shop in Brooklyn that produces handmade garments for the likes of Brooks Brothers and Band of Outsiders.

The demise of the tailor has been foretold since the arrival of ready-made, mass-produced clothing. Technophiles argued his scissors would be replaced by electronic cutters, his needle and thread by computerized sewing machines. If suit making’s complicated ballet of proportion and construction could be reduced to measurements and numbers, a tailor’s knowledge could be completely automated, so the logic went.

And, in many cases, that has happened. But at the highest levels of suit making, identified by hand-stitched construction, tailoring has proven to be irrepressible. While they no longer occupy the position they once held in the apparel business, tailors are surviving and even thriving — just in new places. Today, they hail from the new centers of suit manufacturing: China, Chile and Eastern Europe. Even Italian and American companies that continue to produce domestically are finding ways to keep their traditions

BRIONI PHOTO BY KYLE ERICKSEN

A master tailor with the students at Brioni’s tailoring school.

Insets from top: The old guard at Martin Greenfield Clothiers: Pasquale DeFalco and Mario Mannarino. alive by either recruiting tailors from abroad or training new ones at home.

So DeFalco is only partially right. The number of tailors made in his mold has indeed dwindled, but as suit making has gone global, so, too, has the trade.

Across the worn floorboards of Martin Greenfield’s factory is Raul Pullutasig, a 37-year-old Ecuador native and up-and-coming tailor. His story is similar to DeFalco’s, but it begins 40 years later. Pullutasig started as an apprentice in a tailor shop at age 15, then moved to Mexico to work in a suit factory, learning hand-sewing along the way. “[South American tailors] tend to be well trained and quite skilled,” said Tod Greenfield, the shop’s vice president and son of the owner. “I’m sure that generation of tailors will take over as the Italian guys retire.”

Today high-end suit factories are as global as the industry itself. At Martin Greenfield, 12 languages are spoken. “We get by without translators,” Tod said.

“Tailoring has a universal language.” Operators at Hickey Freeman’s shop in Rochester, N.Y., hail from more than 20 countries. Halfway across the U.S. at Oxxford Clothes, a Chicago-based maker of hand-crafted tailored clothing, there are 15 master tailors overseeing the floor, hailing from Europe as well as Asia and South America.

“I think people are so focused on Italy and Savile Row as the only sources of tailors,” said Mike Cohen, president of Oxxford Clothes. “The world is so small now. We have wonder tailors from South America that do immaculate work. I remember people used to say, ‘Next year there will be no tailors.’ We haven’t had that problem.”

Most of the 225 cutters, sewers and pressers in Oxxford’s shop are immigrants who came to the U.S. with some level of skill — a knack for sewing buttonholes, making pockets or attaching collars.

There are some notable exceptions. Last year, in a move symbolic of the changes reshaping the tailoring trade, Oxxford’s long-time, Italian-born head tailor announced plans to retire. His replacement is a man from Minnesota.

The U.S. was home to 31,550 tailors, dressmakers and custom sewers as of May 2007, the most current data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Most of them work in clothing stores; fewer than 4,000 are employed in cut-and-sew facilities like Oxxford’s or Martin Greenfield.

The bureau doesn’t break out the number of tailors or the percentage of them who are U.S. born. But experts say the figure is tiny.

“There are few American tailors left,” said Mark Metzger, president of the Custom Tailors & Designers Association, noting that foreign-born tailors have re-

sisted joining the association over the years. “We used to fill up the Waldorf-Astoria at our annual meeting with nearly 1,500 members. This year, 50 will attend.”

The lack of American-born tailors means domestic suit makers have to rely on laborers from abroad — easy enough for shops in major cities such as Chicago and New York, where immigrant populations are large.

Not so for Hickey Freeman, which operates one of America’s oldest suit factories in Rochester. Finding operators, let alone highly skilled tailors, is a major concern for the shop, which hires agencies in Turkey and China to recruit sewers and cutters with at least two years of experience. It can take seven years to get a recruit through immigration. Once they’re here, the company takes considerable pains to retain them. It provides sponsors with green cards, housing, language classes, driving classes and signing bonuses. It works to obtain green cards for the tailor’s family, too, and helps get their kids signed up for school. Hickey Freeman sponsors 10 percent of the factory’s 492 employees.

Before World War II, a tailor started with an apprenticeship. That meant performing menial tasks in a tailor shop for years — sometimes paying the shop owner for the privilege — until the master tailor decided he was ready to begin learning.

“The first week [the master] tied my middle finger down to my palm to help develop my muscles for the thimble,” said Mario Mannarino, 67, the head tailor at Martin Greenfield. “Then I swept floors.”

Mannarino apprenticed five years before emigrating — a short education compared with his peers, some of whom maintained that it takes 20 years of training to become a tailor.

But as the apprenticeship model faded, and with it a steady influx of new tailors, Italian suit companies have taken matters into their own hands. Brioni, the Italian fashion house known for handmade suits, opened a tailoring school in 1985 after it began having difficulty hiring qualified tailors.

“Veteran tailors still exist in Italy. However, the old tradition of teaching skills [in shops] does not exist anymore,” said Andrea Perrone, the company’s co-chief executive.

“The lack of new tailors jeopardized the survival of the firm.”

Today, the five-year program, which admits 20 students a year, supplies enough skilled laborers for Brioni’s shop in Penne, highlighting the resilience, at least in Italy, of craft professions in the 21st century.

Now Brioni is exporting its expertise.

The company inked a partnership with the Royal College of Art in London last year, with the goal of teaching suit making to the students enrolled in the college’s men’s wear fashion program. As part of the program, aspiring designers spend time at Brioni’s tailoring academy.

“The partnership with the [school] is fostering and encouraging the tailoring vocation outside of Italy, and we like to support this strategy,” said Perrone. “Young designers are discovering that becoming a master tailor is an interesting profession. He is no longer an old man in a tailor shop, but rather an important manager.”

Brioni is not alone in taking steps to foster education. Kiton, a Neapolitan brand whose handmade suits are considered among the best in the world, also operates a school within its premises. Twenty-five students a year start the fiveyear program, which includes two years of study and three years of additional training before they join Kiton’s team.

“Without the school it would be very difficult to find workers,” said Antonio De Matteis, Kiton’s chief operating officer, adding that most students hail from Naples and the region that surrounds it. “The average age of our tailors is now 36 — not what you think of when you think of a tailor.

When the school launched a decade ago, Kiton had trouble filling its seats. The idea of learning an antiquated craft hadn’t caught on. “Today we have a waiting list of 100 people,” De Matteis said. “They know it’s a job they can have for life.”

Longevity seems to be the common thread for many tailors, who practice their century-old craft well into their golden years.

“I keep working because I can,” said Martin Greenfield’s Mannarino, whose primary job is to turn sketches from the shop’s designer clients into patterns.

“And because I continue to get better at it.”

He works in the pattern room, cutting paper so that the new tuxedo from Rag & Bone or the cropped jacket from Band of Outsiders reflects the designer’s vision. In the background, a computerized patternmaker whirs, transforming Mannarino’s work into specs that the factory operators use to make suits.

“And besides,” he noted, “that machine still hasn’t figured out how to do what I can do.”